UP govt to appeal against court’s order: Azam Khan

The UP government would appeal against the Barabanki court’s decision rejecting its plea to withdraw case against two alleged HuJI operatives in connection with seizure of explosives.

‘This is not the last court. An appeal would be filed against the Barabanki court decision of today,’ UP minister Azam Khan said on the sidelines of a programme.

The UP government’s application moved on 26 April to withdraw case against Tariq Kasmi and Khalid Mujahid, who are also accused in 2007 Gorakhpur serial blasts case, was earlier today rejected by a Barabanki court.

‘The government has its own right and the court, its own. There should not be any clash between the government and the court. This is proved in the manner in which the government recently implemented the orders of the high court,’ Khan said.

‘But if someone is proved innocent in police investigations, he should get justice,’ Khan said, adding that ‘if the government does not do justice with the innocent, it also amounts to injustice.’

The minister said the process of justice should go on and not stop. Kasmi and Mujahid were reportedly arrested from near Barabanki railway station with explosives.

After coming to power, the SP government had announced to the review cases against ‘innocent’ youths lodged in jail on charges of attacks in Rampur as well as in serial blasts in courts of Faizabad, Barabanki, Lucknow and also in Gorakhpur and Varanasi blasts.

Meanwhile, talking about the recent case regarding his boycott of the recent Harvard lecture, he said that American people have missed out on an opportunity to gain from the experience of Uttar Pradesh government in organising ‘Mahakumbh’, said state minister Azam Khan, who cut short his visit to the US after being detained at the Boston airport last month.

‘The real loss because of their behaviour has been that of America whose people had wanted to know how the Mahakumbh was organised and crowd was managed... we have been hailed and praised by the 125 crore people,’ Khan said on Friday, during of release of e-book on SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav written by his younger brother and state minister Shivpal Singh Yadav.

He also lashed out at the manner in which the country had ‘meekly accepted’ the treatment meted out to former president APJ Abdul Kalam and former Union minister George Fernandes in the US.

UP MINISTER DECLINES US VARSITY INVITE

Uttar Pradesh irrigation minister Shivpal Singh Yadav on Friday turned down an invitation to him and his ministry officials from the US’ Johns Hopkins University. The minister for his decision cited the ‘humiliation’ of his cabinet colleague Mohammad Azam Khan during his visit to Boston.

‘There is no point in going to a country where guests are not respected and are humiliated,’ he said.

Hopkins University invited the minister to share his experiences on flood control and expediting a water sector restructuring project in his state.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav last month boycotted his lecture at Harvard Business School after Azam Khan was frisked and detained by the homeland security staff at Logan International Airport in Boston.